Municipal, county and agency representatives throughout Florida joined the UF/IFAS Urban Forestry Extension for two days of hands-on training for team leaders in the Tree Stewards Volunteer program.
The workshop, held on August 25 and 26 at the UF/IFAS Extension Hillsborough County office, was led by UF/IFAS School of Forest, Fisheries, and Geomatics Sciences (SFFGS) Urban Forestry Extension Program Coordinator Stephanie Cadaval and UF/IFAS Hillsborough Extension Agent Alyssa Vinson.
The goal of the training is to prepare participants to plan, lead, and implement a successful Tree Stewards program in their community.
“This training provided participants with practical tools and a supportive network to help bring tree stewardship education and volunteer engagement to communities across Florida,” said Vinson.
The inaugural group of Tree Steward Leaders receiving the training included professionals working in non-profit and volunteer-based organizations, municipalities, UF IFAS Extension, and others. The group of 11 participants were from Hillsborough, Orange, Citrus, Lake, Miami-Dade, and Pinellas counties.
Building a statewide network of Tree Steward Leaders who can establish and support local tree stewardship programs using the soon-to-be-released new Florida Tree Stewards Manual as the foundation for volunteer education and training is intended outcome.
“The project is one we have been working on for the past couple of years,” said SFFGS Professor of Forest Systems and Extension Specialist Michael Andreu.
“The need for a statewide urban tree stewardship curriculum was clear,” he said. “There existed many local training programs, but we really needed to create something that would work regardless of where you were in the state.”
Andreu added that it was Florida Forest Service Urban Forester Todd Little who immediately saw the value of this idea and found funding to support its creation.
“Members of the Urban Forestry Extension Council (UFEC) which includes extension specialists and agents as well as urban forestry practitioners came together to develop a manual that is the foundation for the curriculum,” Andreu said.
“We have modules addressing various aspects of urban forestry and arboriculture to help develop a cadre of informed citizens about the value and importance of trees in their communities. Now that the manual has been completed, we need to begin training those citizens.
“This was our pilot effort to get this program stood up statewide and it was a big success. Our goal is to offer this training in locations throughout the state so that we can raise awareness of the importance of trees to the health and welfare of Floridians and our urban environments.”
According to Cadaval, “Urban Forest stewardship means taking care of the urban forest we have today to ensure it is available and healthy for future generations of people, plants, and wildlife.
“A big part of this means caring for and about trees,” she said. “Sometimes this is done through maintenance and management such as planting, pruning, or watering. Sometimes this looks more like educating others about the resource and its importance.
Cadaval added that urban forests can be hard for people to conceptualize because we are taught that urban areas and forests are at polar opposites of each other.
“However, most people living in cities might interact with and experience ‘nearby nature’ every day. They may see trees, shrubs, flowers, grass, and other vegetation outside their windows, or seek them out for shade on their daily walks or commutes. If you pay attention, you may see a bird or hear insects at night. And if you are lucky, you might live near a park, or maybe in Florida, your condo is steps from the shoreline.
“All of these pieces and the plants and trees in them are part of our urban forests. Stewardship means helping care for these resources so people, wildlife, and communities can thrive.”
Throughout the training, participants engaged in hands-on activities, shared ideas with peers from across the state, and explored approaches for helping volunteers learn, serve, and engage in urban forest stewardship.
New leaders were able to meet and work with others with similar goals and engage with various activity options for stewards to learn and implement. Each new leader finished the program with a plan to take home and implement for developing new stewardship groups or incorporating tree stewardship for existing groups.
“I really enjoyed the collaborative learning framework of the Tree Stewards program – the asset mapping was particularly helpful,” said Chelsea Freeman, urban forestry and sustainability coordinator for the city of St. Petersburg. “The St. Pete team is considering how to use Tree Steward volunteers for young tree pruning and watering crews.”
“We are excited to be some of the first to pilot the program,” said training participant Lara Milligan, natural resources agent for UF/IFAS Extension in Pinellas County.
“While not official yet, our vision we discussed during the training is to train up a team of Tree Stewards to help with the establishment and pruning of young trees that are being installed as part of an adoption program where residents receive a free tree that is on their private property, but will provide benefits for the right of way,” Milligan said.
Vinson agrees that Tree Stewards can help span the gap between planting and establishment, educate their neighbors, and support healthy urban forests that give back to our communities.
“An unfortunately large percentage of trees planted in urban areas never reach maturity, are pruned improperly, or planted in an inappropriate location,” she said.
“This Florida Tree Stewardship Training marks an important first step for a new statewide program that seeks to provide much needed support for volunteer Tree Stewards throughout Florida’s urban forests.”
Dates and locations for the next Tree Stewardship Leadership Training have not yet been announced, Cadaval said. “We are currently pursuing funding to support future workshops and our ability to travel and teach them.”
Folks interested in leading or supporting Tree Steward programs in their communities are encouraged to follow UF/IFAS Florida Urban Forestry Extension Council announcements for upcoming opportunities and contact Cadaval via email with any questions.
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